Gate-operating device.



J. S. G. HOFER.

GATE OPERATING DEVICE APPLICATION FILED APR.13.1915.

1,179,629. Patented Apr. 18,1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET1.

J. s. G. HOFER. GATE OPERATING DEVICE. APPLICATION 'HLED APR. l3. I915.

Patented Apr. 18, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET'2.

III

1. s. e. HO FER. GATE OPERATING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 13, 1915.

Patented Apr. 18, 1916. 3 sun's-4mm 3.

JACOB S. G. HOFER, 0F BRIDGEWATER, SOUTH DAKOTA.

GATE-OPERATING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 18, 1916.

Application filed April 13, 1915. Serial No. 21,047.

Toall whom it may. concern:

Be it known that I, JACOB S. G. HorER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Bridgewater, in the county of McCook and State of SouthDakota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gate-Operating Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in gate operating devices, moreparticularly to devices employed for opening and closing the large farmgates from a distance, or arranged to enable a person to open the gatefrom the vehicle or from horseback when approaching the gate and withoutalighting, and to close the gate after having passed through, and hasfor one of its objects to improve the construction and increase theefiiciency and utility of devices of this character.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide a simply constructeddevice which may be applied without material structural change to gatesof various sizes and forms. With these and other objects in view, the

invention consists in certain novel features of construction ashereinafter shown and described and then specifically pointed out in theclaims; and in the drawings illustrative of the preferred embodiment ofthe invention. Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a gatestructure including portions of the hinge postand the latch post withthe improvements applied; Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the hinge postand a portion of the gate operating mechanism, and a side View of one ofthe supports for the operating cable; Fig. 3is a detached plan View ofthe cable supporting bracket; Fig. 4 is a planv view partly in sectionof the parts shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is an edge view of the'bracket forreceiving the free end of the gate operating member with the gate memherin section on the line 55 of Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a plan view of thebracket for supporting and guiding the resilient latch memher with theadjacent vertical gate member in section on the line 66 of Fig. 1; Fig.7

is a plan view of the bracket for connecting the lower end of theresilient latch member to the gate with the latch member in section gateis arranged to swing in both directions; a

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the form of latchemployed on the latchpost when the gate 1s swung in one direction only.

A portion of the hinge post of the gate is represented conventionallyat- 10 and a portion of the latch post at 11, these parts being of theusual construction and ary ranged to support the fence material, notshown.

The gate may be of any suitable construct1on, but is preferably formedof gas piping and includes the upper member 12 and the end members13-14, and connecting webbing indicated at 15. The end member 13 ishingedly united to the post, as represented at 16, while the latch post11 is provided with a latch device 17. If the gate is to swing in bothdirections, the form of latch device shown in Fig. 9 is to be employed,but if the gate is to swing in one direction only, the form of latchdevice indicated in Fig. 10 will be employed.

Bearlng upon opposite sides of the end member 14 of the gate are straps1819 and bolted together on opposite sides of the member 13, as shown at2021, and with another bolt 22 operating through the members 1819 andspaced from the bolt 21. A rod 28, of resilient material, such as steel,is formed at one end with an eye 24 engaging around the bolt 21 betweenthe plates 18-19 and looped around the bolt 22 and thence extendedupwardly to a point above the upper line of the gate and terminating inan eye 25. The vertical portion of the rod 23 enters the notch in thelatch member.

17 and thus holds the gate in closed position. A simply constructedlatch device is thus produced, which is certain inits action and may bereadily released either manually or by the operating mechanism, as maybe pre ferred.

Bearing upon opposite sides of the upper member 14 of the gate near thelatch device 17 are clip members 7 9-8O and secured to the member 14 byclamp bolts or other suitable fastening devices 8182 at opposite sidesof the member 14. The members 7 9.80 extend toward the latch post 11 andare spaced apart'to form a guide socket 83 to slidably receive themember23 and thus prevent lateral displacement of the same.

A'supporting standard 26 is forked at its lower end, as shown at 27, tobear upon opposite sides of the hinge post 10 and bolted thereto, asrepresented at 28. The stand shown in Fig. 4.

ard 26 is formed with an upper lateral arm 7 ber 33 is rigidly supportedin the downwardly directed socket 38, the latter being thus arranged torotate upon the upper face of the bearing 31.

A supporting member or spoke-like device 39 is provided with a. threadedterminal member 40 which engages in the socket 35,

while a similar spoke-like member 41 is pro-v vided with a threadedterminal member 42 engaging in the socket 36. A threaded spoke-likemember 43is provided with a threaded terminal member 44 engaging in thesocket 37. The three members 39, 41 and 43 are preferably tubular, andthe member 43 is provided with a cap 45 hav ng a threaded outwardlydirected aperture, as

The members 39,41 and 43 are designed to support a mutilated cablecarrying'wheel formed in segmental sections 46-47. The

member 46 is provided with a socket 48 to receive the contiguous end ofthe member 47, as shown in Fig. 4, the twoparts being united by a clampscrew 49 which is threaded in'the cap 45. The member 46 is provided withan inwardly directed pin 50 which engages in the outer free end of themember 39, while the member 47 is provided with a similar pin, indicatedat 51, to engage in the outer free end of the mem ber 41. By this means,a half wheel is produced having a cable receiving groove 52' in itsouter face, the. members being firmly united and capable of beingseparated for transportation or storage, as hereinafter moreparticularly described.

Bolted or otherwise secured, as shown 53, to the arm 29 0f the'standard'26. is a cable guiding bracket comprising a body portion 54 andoppositely directed branch ing arms 55 and 56. The arm 55 terminating ina guide eye 57, while thearm 56 terminates in a guide eye 58. Thesegmental members 46-47 are designed to receivethe terminals of drawcables, indicated convens tionally at 59-60, the cable 60 being connected at 61 to the segmental member 46, and passing thence throughtheguide eye 58, and the cable'59 being connected at 62 to the segmentalmember 47 and passing thence through the eye 57, the two cables crossingeach other between the eyes 57 and 58. The cables 59 and 60'eXt end inopposite directions for any required distance from the hinge post andpass over guide pulleys, one. of which. is represented at 63,connectedto a bracket 64, the latter being connected to a suitable post,a portion of which is represented at 65. It will be understood that oneof the posts 65, one of the brackets 64 and a pulley 63 will belocated.at each side of the gate when the gate is to swing in bothdirections, but one of.

the posts only is shown as suflicient t o'illus trate both of the cablesupports.

Each of the cables will be provided with; a pull member, one of which isrepresented at 66, and each cable is provided with a weight 67 tomaintain the cables normally in tight position. Rigidly connected to themember 33 is a'collar 68, the collar bein preferably secured to the,member 33 by a set screw 69. A relatively'short arm' 70- "and-arelatively long arm 71 extend from v The thecollar 68 in oppositedirections. shorter arm 70 terminates in a bearing 172 having a verticalaperture, while the arm;-

71 terminates in an eye73 to receive a pull cable 74.

A relatively heavy spring 75 surrounds the member 33 between the collar68 andthe bearing 32 with one terminal upturned;

to enter the aperture in the bearing 72, as j represented'at 76, and theother terminal extending outwardly substantially in parallel relation tothe arm 71, as shown at 77, t

the portion 77 being adapted to slidably engage in a gate operatingmember 78, as

shown.

Bearing-upon opposite sides of the member 12 are clip devices 8485 andsecured to the member 12*by clamp bolts or like die vices 86-87. Themembers 84-85 are extended upwardly for a suitable distance and:

are formed with a guide socket 88 between them, and likewise furthersecured by a clamp bolt 89 or like device. The guide socket 88isdesigned to slidably receive the member 78, as shown in Fig. 1. The pulllid cable 74 is connected at itsfree end to the eye 25 of the resilientlatch member'2'3; l The spring 7 5 operates to maintain the arms 70'-71normally in longitudinal alinementj' with the gate when closed. Whenthus arranged, the half wheel cable supporting de vice will likewise beheld normally in its; central position, as illustrated in Fig. 4, and athe pull members 66 will likewis'ebe-in their normal position, asshown-in Fig. 2.

With the devicethus constructed, the operation is as follows: Assuming;that the;

gate is inclosed position, aperson'approachingeither in a vehicle oron'horsebackapl plies a downwardly pulling force to the member 66 andthus causes themember to be rotated-through the action ofthecable l 59or 60, as the case may be, upon'thehal f';

wheel portion of the'device. This move-- ment causes the arm 71 to" movelaterally.

and exercise a pulling force upon the pull member 74: and thus draws thelatch member 23 away from the latch device 17 and releases the gate.This movement of the member 71 correspondingly actuates the member. 70,but does not actuate the member 78 until the gate has been unlatched,the spring permitting the movement of the member 71 to an extentsufiicient to release the latch. Then the gate is picked up through theco-action of the extension 77 of the spring 7 5 and the member 78. Thecontinued movement of the cable then carries the gate into openposition. If the gate is to swing in both directions, two of the posts65 will be arranged one at each side of the gateway opening and thelatch device represented in Fig. 9 applied to the post 11.

the gate is to swing in but one direction, one of the posts 65 only willbe required and the latch member shown in Fig. 10 applied to the post11. When applied to a gate moving in one direction only, one ofthe'segmental members 46 or 47 will remain idle, as will be obvious.

The improved device is simple in com struction, can be inexpensivelymanufactured and applied without material structural change to gates ofvarious forms and sizes by making slight and unimportant changes in theconstruction of the members for supporting the free end of the member 78, the guide and the support for the resilient member 23.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is 1. A gateoperating apparatus comprising a shaft mounted to oscillate, a latchdevice adapted to hold a gate in closed position, an arm connectedintermediate its ends to said shaft and partaking of its motion,connecting means between said latch device and arm at one end, a springhaving laterally projecting terminals, one of said terminals beingconnected to the other end of said arm, and means adapted to couple theother of said terminals to a gate.

2. A gate structure including a hinge post, a latch post, a gate hingedto the hinge post and having a latch device, a standard connected to thehinge post and including lateral arms spaced apart and having terminalbearings, a shaft mounted for oscillation in said bearings, an armconnected intermediate its. ends to said shaft and partaking of itsmotion, connecting means between said arm at one end and said latchdevice, a spring having laterally projecting terminals, one of saidterminals being connected to the, other end of said arm, means adaptedto couple the other terminal of said spring to a gate, and means foroscillating Said shaft.

8. A gate operating apparatus comprising a shaft mounted to oscillate, agate mounted to swing, a latch device carried by the gate, meansconnecting the shaft to the latch and gate whereby the oscillation ofthe shaft opens the gate, a body connected to said shaft and having aplurality of radial sockets, a supporting member connected to each ofsaid sockets, co-acting segmental members connected to said supportingmembers, one of said segmental members having a socket to receive thecontiguous end of the other segmental member, a cap engaging over thesupporting member which is located nearest to the socket, holdingdevices engaging through the socket and the socket engaging portion ofthe segmental member and into the cap, and pull cables connected,respectively, to said segmental members.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JACOB S. G. HOFER. [L.s.]

Witnesses:

A. METTLER, MATH MAYER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe "Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. G.

